Land Suitability Investigation for Solar Power Plant Using GIS, AHP and Multi-Criteria Decision Approach: A Case of Megacity Kolkata, West Bengal, India

Renewable energy sources are the most necessitated natural energy to reduce fossil fuels globally. Fossil fuel is the most valuable and limited resource on the planet, but on the other hand, renewable energy creates less pollution. Solar energy is the most effective renewable resource for daily use....

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Sustainability 2022-09, Vol.14 (18), p.11276
Main Authors: Halder, Bijay, Banik, Papiya, Almohamad, Hussein, Al Dughairi, Ahmed Abdullah, Al-Mutiry, Motrih, Al Shahrani, Haya Falah, Abdo, Hazem Ghassan
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Air pollution
Alternative energy sources
Analysis
Analytic hierarchy process
Central business districts
Cities
Decision making
Earth
Electric power-plants
Energy
Energy minerals
Energy resources
Energy sources
Environmental aspects
Evaluation
Fossil fuels
Geographic information systems
Geospatial data
Green technology
Information technology
Investigations
Land
Location
Megacities
Multiple criterion
Pollution control
Power plants
Radiation
Remote sensing
Renewable energy sources
Renewable resources
Rural areas
Site selection
Software
Solar energy
Solar energy industry
Solar power
Solar power plants
Sustainability
Sustainable development
Urban areas
Urban planning
Water bodies
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Summary:Renewable energy sources are the most necessitated natural energy to reduce fossil fuels globally. Fossil fuel is the most valuable and limited resource on the planet, but on the other hand, renewable energy creates less pollution. Solar energy is the most effective renewable resource for daily use. Solar power plants are necessary for domestic and daily use. Remote sensing and geographic information technology (GIS) were used for this study to delineate the possible site selection of solar power plants in Kolkata and the surrounding area in West Bengal, India. The analytical hierarchy process (AHP) and the multi-criteria decision-making process (MCDA) were used for each weight calculation and ArcGIS v10.8 was applied for weighted overlay analysis (WOA) for delineation of the result. The site suitability map was developed using a pairwise comparison matrix and the weights were calculated for each criterion. The suitability map was divided into five categories, from not suitable to very highly suitable. A total of 474.21 km2 (10.69%) of the area was classified as very highly suitable whereas 249.54 km2 (5.62%) area was classified as not suitable because of the water area and east Kolkata wetland. A total of 1438.15 km2 (32.43%) of the area was classified as highly suitable for a solar power plant. The Kolkata megacity and water body locations were identified as moderate to not suitable sites. Very high and high-potential sites were identified 2 to 5 km from the central business district (CBD) location, which is Dharmotala. Renewable energy source is needed in the megacity of Kolkata. If solar power plants are contracted then the demand for fossil fuel will be reduced one day, and that will help the environment as well as the society in terms of sustainable development. This study result is helpful for administrators, urban planners, developers, and other stakeholders for the implementation and development of a new solar power plant in the study area.
ISSN:2071-1050
2071-1050
DOI:10.3390/su141811276